Spicy Crab & Corn Dip

I just invented this dip based on one my friend, Jennifer, served at her Fourth of July bash last weekend.  Hers was really, really good and came from Breakstone based on their new line of "Zesty Blends."  The little grocery near my house doesn't yet carry Breakstone's Zesty Blends so I had to improvise. Here's what I came up with:

1 10-oz. package of frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 cup of grated parmesan cheese
1 pkg. of shredded Mexican 4-cheese blend
1 pt. of sour cream
1 small can of chopped chiles (more or less to taste!)
3 cloves of garlic
1 lb. can of lump crab meat
1 T Old Bay

Here's the very complicated directions.

Are you ready?

It's really hard.

Dump all that stuff in a bowl and mix it around.  It's going to make a heck of a lot of dip so make it when you're exceptionally hungry or you've got people coming over.

I put half of the mixture in a 9" pyrex pie plate.  I baked it at 350 degrees for 25 minutes (until the top was all brown and bubbly) and now we're going to eat it with my favorite blue corn and flax seed chips from Target.  You can serve this with any chip you like or with crackers or baguette slices.  It's yummy.

The other half of the mixture is still up for debate.  I'd like to freeze it but I don't know what freezing will do to sour cream and I don't want to waste all of that crab.  So right now, it's in a plastic container in the fridge.  I believe that by being in the fridge, the chiles are going to spread their spicy goodness deeper into the dip.

Look at that!  That's how we watch True Blood here at our house!

Slow Made Beans of Goodness

This is not a recipe you can start and have ready in fifteen minutes.  Sorry folks.  You need to plan DAYS in advance for this one, but it's well worth it.  You can shorten the time from prep to plate by using canned beans and that's perfectly okay.

What you'll need:
1 lb. bag of navy beans or 2 cans
1 lb. of bacon, diced small (I like peppered bacon)
1 big onion, diced small
Large pinch crushed red pepper flakes
4 garlic cloves, smashed and finely chopped
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 bottles of your favorite BBQ sauce (or whatever is on sale!) 
1 1/2 cups reserved bean liquid